If you’re looking to control costs and increase profits, a CRFA membership is a great place to start.  The average CRFA member saves more than $2,100 a year with valuable benefits from Canada’s top suppliers. 

These exclusive money-saving programs include savings on:

… Credit and debit cards (Visa, MasterCard, Interac and Discover)
… Fuel and energy costs (Esso, Superior Propane, Constellation NewEnergy)
… Insurance needs (including restaurant and health insurance (LMS Prolink) and home and auto insurance (Marsh Canada / novex))
… Equipment leasing (Arctic Refrigeration)
… Business supplies and payroll services … NEBS and NEBS Payweb.ca
… Online recruiting (Hcareers)
… Telephone costs (including long distance calling (Primus) and cell phones (Bell))
… Televisions (Samsung)
… Water filtration systems (Kinetico Water Systems)
… Server training (Smart Serve Ontario)
… Hospitality publications (Foodservice & Hospitality)
… plus exclusive online discounts for members and their employees from Best Western Hotels, Budget Car and Truck Rental, Costco, Hertz, Mark’s Work Wearhouse, Royal LePage and Wholesale Club

Independent operators can also control costs with Groupex, a CRFA-owned group buying program that independents remain competitive by giving them the buying power of chains.

Groupex reduces costs for restaurateurs by offering volume pricing from name-brand suppliers such as Pepsi, Johnson-Diversey, Canada Bread, Cavendish Farms, Canadian Linen, Nestlé and others.  Each month, Groupex members receive a rebate cheque that can reduce their operating costs by thousands of dollars a year.

	It’s also a good idea to get a true measure of “where you stand” in relation to your competitors and their spending habits.  While CRFA’s Operations Report doesn’t identify foodservice operations by name, it does include the latest data on sales, cost of sales, expenses and pre-tax profit, by segment and province – making it easy for you to identify where the best savings opportunies lie.  Available exclusively to CRFA members, you can order a copy online for just $50.00 per copy.
	Another valuable resource is the newly updated Canadian Restaurant Accounting book.  Revised and reprinted in October 2009, the book includes a chapter on Internal Controls -- food cost controls, beverage cost controls and labour cost controls -- as well was a CD Rom with downloadable charts ready-to-use in any foodservice business.  This book is available to CRFA members for $32.95 and non-members for $39.95. Order your copy today!